Paltinis Sinaia

... about everything from politics to weekend partying. Anyway, the countryside was very dramatic on a cloudy drive through the mountains. We stopped breifly at the palace of peles that i had missed the previous day. It was also stunning and I will need to go back for a tour. The trip ended at the airport waiting for the flight home. !!! Sono Felice!

... to see in Romania. Emily and I hypothesized on the act as a method of fundraising while travelling. Clearly, I should have brought my oboe across the ocean with me. I'm going about this trip all wrong. The return trip to Bucharest was uneventful and slow (people heading back to the city after the weekend created traffic jams) save for nearly getting run over crossing the highway at our rest stop. Nearly getting run over seems to happen a lot in Romania...

... Are these changes for the best? I like that Mihai's cute, chubby, glasses-wearing mom enjoys collecting flowers almost daily beneath the mountains. I also like trying her turkey-meat-and-boiled-potatoes-and-red -sauce meal, and her cabbage soup. - Modern O. Thanks to Jula; Edmund; moustachioed painter; Tez & Lubos; Andre & Eve; Kookar; Benedetto; Chaba; Polasc; Joszef; and Nelu for rides! Much thanks to Mihai, his mom, Emil, & Tamara for the place to stay!

... to lately? I finished the John Grisham book, "The Broker" which was good but not great. Now, I am getting in touch with my feminine side and reading "Memoirs of a Geisha." It is strange, because I can't remember the last time I have seen the movie, then read the book. I always read the book first if I can. What's funnier still is that I really didn't care for the movie... and it had Zhang Ziyi in it... which we ALL know makes a movie that much ...

... that are kind of hidden in the woods. It also has great mountain views, but during the day a ...

... up for it: They put up these flags all over the citadel and there's a town crier who goes around beating his drum and shouting invitations to the festival in different languages. It's been very relaxing here, since I've seen all there is to see and am now just lounging around the cafes waiting for my overnight train to Sofia. That and the hostel has very friendly workers who like to party every night and distribute free drinks to anybody who wants one.

... that progressed from shocking crispness to cloud-like softness which embraces a comfortingly warm apple filling expertly touched with cinnamon and sugar. The rest of our group enthusiastically agreed with our assessment as they went back for seconds and thirds. Paul needed a moment to collect himself. Mel noted in amusement Paul's goofy spaced-out face coated with a light sprinkling of icing sugar. She elected not to disturb him.

... backpackers to take back to her ad hoc hostel, basically an apartment converted for that use, entirely DIY auto-pilot. God help you if one of your back-packer buddies leaves the door open or some other such irresponsible nonsense. A couple days of this is enough, but I still like Romania, so book a train to Timisoara.

... castle was a pet balck bear this guy had chianed to a post at the entrance. He was charging money for photos with the bear, who was so tame he even kissed his owner! Many locals approached us in Sinaia offering us rooms, and we ended up taking one from a guy called Puio and his wife Elena. To get to his house, we trudged way up a massive staircase (as regret began to build), but the view of fall colours on the mountains was well worth the hike and the $20 Canadian we forked over.